Originally published at: Michigan man's forgetfulness turns him into a double jackpot lottery winner | Boing Boing
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It’s totally random each drawing, but does one retire a number set after winning with it once or as in this case, twice?
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Nah, at that point it’s your lucky numbers. And the odds remain exactly the same no matter which numbers you play, so might as well stick with them.
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The fact that last week’s numbers are just as likely as any others to win this week is a good way to put your chances into perspective.
(The numbers are also just as likely to be 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6; but then the expected winnings would be lower, since apparently quite a lot of people play those numbers. But anyway the point is, the winning move is not to play)
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So you think you’ve won $110,000 and you get “a feeling of relief” when you discover it’s actually $220,000?!
I mean, $110,000 isn’t exactly a downer, FFS!
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Unless you’re the person that just won 1.3 billion.
Someone eventually wins, your chances to be that person are better if you have a ticket.
I get the odds say I’ll never win but those same odds said neither would the person that won.
In Michigan I play Fantasy 5 more often because someone wins 110 grand almost daily, some drawings get to 300 grand but it rarely goes for more than a day or two. The odds are 1:575,000, still not great but much better than those massive jackpots.
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I see one benefit to playing the same numbers, you will know if you won immediately, without checking the ticket. And the numbers dont care. They dont know they came up already.
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And you’re also less likely to experience the remorse that could come if the numbers that you played last week or some other time in the past were to become winners while you’ve moved on to a new set of numbers.
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On the other hand, if you always play the same set of numbers, but forget to buy a ticket, and then your numbers come up…
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On one hand the lottery is a “stupidity tax” because the odds are so huge.
On the other hand, it’s no worse than buying a coffee or candy bar each day-- that small bit of enjoyment or satisfaction you get from a coffee you could get from having a ticket in your pocket that you think just might be a big winner. As long as you keep it reasonable-- the people who sit in the corner bodega playing Keno all day, or buying $60 worth of scratch tickets, that’s another story. [ETA: and you can claim those losing tickets as gambling losses on your taxes, as long as you also declare winnings.]
Anyway, it’s good enough for Jeff Bridges. . . apparently.
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I just bought a weeks worth of Fantasy 5 tickets, I have no idea what the numbers are. I bought them online so I don’t even have to check the numbers, they’ll let me know when I can pick up my check.
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My first Fantasy 5 draw worked out, I just got an email from Michigan Lottery.
Congratulations on your win!
Game: Fantasy 5
Date Won: 01/18/2023
Amount: 1.00
Draw: 9993
Congratulations on your win! Your prize has been transferred to your Michigan Lottery balance!
Six more days to go, fingers crossed.
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